India bans six single-use plastic products
India is set to impose a nationwide ban on plastic bags, cups and straws on Oct. 2, in its most sweeping measure yet to stamp out single-use plastics.
South Asia
South Asia spans countries including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and their neighbors. This archive gathers progress stories from the region — covering public health, education, climate adaptation, economic inclusion, and more.
The Bangladeshi Supreme Court has given all rivers in the country legal rights
Now, people who damage a river can get taken to court by the government-appointed National River Conservation Commission. They’ll be tried as if they’d harmed a living entity.
Youth literacy rate in Bangladesh soars to 93%
Youth literacy rates in Bangladesh have risen to almost 93%, up from 62% in 2006 and 45% in 1991.
Tiger populations in India have doubled to nearly 3,000 in last 15 years
“It was decided in St. Petersburg that target of doubling tiger population would be 2022, we achieved it 4 years in advance.”
Sri Lanka is measles-free, World Health Organization says
Sri Lanka has defied the global trend in the battle against measles, with the country declared free of the highly infectious disease by the World Health Organization.
AIDS deaths in India plummet by over 70% since 2005
New infections have declined in India by more than 80 per cent from peak of epidemic in 1995 and deaths from the disease have come down by 71 per cent since its peak in 2005.
Costs of building large-scale solar installations in India fell by 27 per cent in 2018
Around the globe, prices are falling and India is now producing the world’s cheapest solar power, according to an IRENA survey.
Indian state Madhya Pradesh breaks Guinness World Record, plants 66 million trees in just 12 hours
Madhya Pradesh created a new Guinness World Record after 1.5 million volunteers planted more than 66 million tree saplings within half a day along the Narmada river.
India begins launching “pink booths” to encourage female voting
“Pink booths” feature an all-female staff – including police and security personnel – and childcare facilities in order to encourage women to vote.
India projected to surpass Paris Agreement clean energy commitment
According to a new report from Moody’s, India will likely see the share of non-fossil fuel power generation capacity to 45% by 2022 against a commitment of 40% by the same year.